jeng1969

Don't let them see you freak out

Food has also been my number one coping mechanisms. I have some alternatives, but don't always go to them....calling a friend, walking, swimming at the YMCA, reading, deep breathing. I am reading a book on mindfulness, and dabbling with meditation. For the most part it seems to help...for me sometimes food is a physical addiction...when I stay away from sugar and simple carbs for a few days, I have an easier time with the food.

I also favor 2nd shift. I don't have kids. I don't have to get up early and jump right out of bed to go to work in the morning. I get the best sleep on 2nd shift, which is really important to me...It does require effort to have a life outside of work on this shift though. I try to make the most of my days off and the day time.

"No, you do not need to offer information about your mental illness to your employer, employees or anyone else. Cause either you are mentally fit to work or you are not it is not a gray area. If you are not then why bother working. If you are then talk about all of the positive things you have to offer." I think this is really good advice. I appreciate it and will take it to heart. Everyone has a bad day, but sometimes we beat ourselves up too much. It is not easy. It takes courage to get out there every day and do what we have to do. It's crucially important to take care of ourselves. I am overweight ( I am sure that some meds I take contribute to this), but I have been feeling hopeless about it until recently...I work evening shift and I started going for a walk in the morning and swimming at the YMCA before work which helps me gets relaxed and focused for work. Having a routine helps me, as well as accessing my support people when I need them. Good luck and I look forward to following this thread.

I have worked as a 3-11 supervisor in LTC. I think your responsibilities will differ from facility to facility. I was not scheduled to work the floor in addition to supervising, except in the rare event that there was absolutely not enough staff to cover the floor. I got report on the house, did scheduling for the shift, assisted in emergent clinical situations as well as problems involving families which was one of my major responsibilities, and contacted my DON or appropriate department head with any problems....for example, contacting maintenance with any problems with the building. I was willing to help floor staff with patient care during busy times or when staffing was short.....however, jumping in to help too much can encourage staff to rely too much on your help. Helping them greatly encourages their cooperation though.That's a boundary that I never quite managed completely. 3-11 LTC supervisor is a very responsible position, but you don't have to worry as much about the day to day stuff like passing meds, treatments, documentation, etc. If you have a good staff, it can be a very rewarding job.